Jack Wayne Lohrke (February 25, 1924 – April 29, 2009) was a third baseman in Major League Baseball. During his playing career, he stood 6' (183 cm) tall, weighed 180 pounds (81.7 kg) and threw and batted right-handed. "Lucky Lohrke" Lohrke earned the nickname "Lucky" not only because it sounded similar to his last name, but because he repeatedly escaped death by sheer good luck during his life. As a US soldier in World War II, he survived a troop train crash that killed three and injured dozens more, as well as the Normandy landings, the Battle of the Bulge and extensive combat throughout Europe, including having the soldier next to him killed on four occasions. Lohrke's good fortune continued when he returned from the war to the United States. Having to concede his plane seat to higher-ranked military personnel, he was bumped at the last moment from the passenger list of a military transport plane scheduled to fly from Camp Kilmer, New Jersey to his home in Los Angeles – the plane crashed, killing everyone on board. After the war and following his transition back to civilian life, Lohrke resumed his baseball career. The summer of 1946 found him playing for the Class B Spokane Indians of the Western International League. On June 24, 1946, Lohrke was a passenger on the team bus carrying the team as it traveled toward Bremerton, Washington, to begin a road trip. At the time, Lohrke was the team's third baseman and was batting .345 in 229 at bats. His performance had earned him a promotion to the AAA Pacific Coast League's San Diego Padres but the team was unable to contact him as he was in transit between cities. The Indians’ business manager contacted the police along the route and asked that they relay the message to Lohrke, which they did when the team stopped for dinner. Lohrke, under orders to report immediately to the Padres, removed his gear from the bus, said goodbye to his teammates, and hitched rides back to Spokane. Later that evening, the team bus broke through a guard rail on a mountain pass, plunged down a hill, and crashed. Of the 15 players on it, nine were killed, including player/manager Mel Cole. The six survivors were badly injured. Major league career Lohrke reached the major leagues the following year. He appeared in 354 games over seven seasons (1947–53)